Straterra, New Zealand’s minerals sector industry organisation, has welcomed the decision from government agency New Zealand Petroleum and Minerals to grant Tasman Mining a mining permit for the high-grade Blackwater gold deposit near Reefton.

“There is still much work to be done to establish the Blackwater prospect as a new mine, but this is an important milestone.” said Straterra CEO Chris Baker.

“New mines are hard to find and hard to develop, in New Zealand and globally. If it goes ahead it will attract hundreds of millions of dollars in investment for the West Coast and New Zealand, create more than a hundred local jobs and boost New Zealand exports considerably. It would also provide significant revenue for the government in the form of royalties and taxes.

“Not many people know that gold is already New Zealand’s number one goods export to Australia. Demand for gold over recent years has been quite strong and that is likely to continue. Everyone knows gold is used for jewellery and as a store of wealth, but it is also an important component in electronics and many emerging ‘low carbon’ technologies.

“Modern hard rock gold mining is conducted responsibly, and environmental management andrehabilitation is an integral part of any mine and project proposal. We have excellent examples of this in New Zealand at Waihi, Macraes and the now closed Reefton gold mine and that good record is due, in no small part, to the legislative regime that regulates resource projects such as the Blackwater proposal – including the RMA. This give us confidence that future operations will meet the highest standards.

“Blackwater was once the most productive mine in the Reefton Goldfield. Between 1908 and 1951 itproduced approximately 700,000 ounces of gold (worth $1.3 billion at today’s prices). The West Coast has a strong tradition in mining. A benefit of that tradition is that the community, local councils and relevant government officials are well versed in the business of mining.

“And we note that the Government has recently provided explicit support for mining on the West Coast and will be keen to see responsible investment generating jobs and taxes.” Mr Baker concluded.